This cave is a rare find in southeastern New England and it has been ignored for over 40 years. Though it is far shorter than most I’ve traversed, I couldn’t wait to get back and follow the passage to its conclusion. I hadn’t seen much during my first visit but I could tell that it exceeded the few details of its map. I couldn’t stop thinking about how much more it might surpass the survey that had been done in the 60’s. Was the cave really 25 feet long? Could there be more caves nearby? How big was the upper chamber at end of the main passage. These were the question that haunted me all week. Anxious to answer them, I began preparing for a return visit. I got all my gear packed, batteries charged and made plans with Chad Grisly to hike to the cave on Saturday.
The Ridge the Cave Lives In
My plan was to not only crawl the entire cave, but also do a quick survey and a short ridge walk. Unfortunately as the week progressed the weather for Saturday began to look grim. Disappointed but undeterred, I quickly made plans with Penelope for Sunday. Due to a previous commitment for Sunday afternoon, I would have to make my visit earlier and shorter than I hoped.
Sunday was warm and sunny, a great day for exploring. Penelope accompanied me to the cave via the new trail in I had discover during my last visit. As soon as we arrived I quickly put on my gear and scrabbled down to the cave. I stepped into the chilly river and began to survey the beginning of the cave. As I collected the measurements I shouted the data up to Penelope who was comfortably perched on a stool at the edge of the ridge above. No longer concerned about the water or mud, I was able to better examine the caves details. As I crawled deeper into the cave I was not disappointed. The cave was not only the claimed length of 25 feet, it was a much more complex than I expected. The map and description I had found in the publication showed a much simpler cave.
Looking Out the Two Entrances
Now being too far in for Penelope to hear me, I was left to record the data myself. Short on time, I got the basic dimensions of the cave and quickly photographed the important features. With that out of the way, I came out for a moment to assure Penelope all was well, and went in for a more careful examination of the cave. I first noticed there was a second passage large enough for a small dog that was higher than the main passage. The two ran parallel to each other and appeared to have a connecting artery. I attempted to measure the length of the new shaft, but my 19 foot tape measure wasn’t long enough to reach the end.
I then began to slowly crawl back in the main cave. About 8 feet in I paused for a moment and looked around. As I scanned the ceiling, I suddenly noticed it had an opening in it. Though it looked tight, I was sure it was large enough for me. Soon I found myself now standing and peering through the connecting channel I saw earlier. I then realize my head was now in another shaft that ran parallel and above the main cave. Though this shaft was also tight, its roof was almost a foot above me and it also appeared to be as long as the other passages. This section of the cave system also had some of the most interesting formation caused by erosion.
Peering Down the Upper Chamber at the Pillar Incised by Erosion
Though the newly discovered channels were clearly too small for a person, they were large enough to suggest a much more extensive karst than I expected. What they lacked in size they made up for in length. Each appeared to be as long, if not longer than the main passage. In just a few minute I had greatly increase the assumed volume of the entire cave, and there was still more to see.
Time was running out so I crawled as far back into the cave as I could. Due to the slope of the cave floor, the closer to the end I got the tighter it was. Lying on my back I tried to squeeze further but made little progress. I had prepared for this possibility and brought along my collapsible tripod. I extended the legs and attached my camera. Setting the shutter for a ten second delay I quickly propped the camera at the conclusion of the cave and took a series of shots facing up and to the sides. I was determined to see if there was an upper chamber as mentioned on the map. I was not disappointed. There definitely was a small upper chamber to the left. Also I could see the shaft that ran above the main passage reconnected above. That was good enough for now.
I exited the cave and climbed back up the ledge. As I removed my dirty wet clothes I shared the details with Penelope. With little time left, we quickly walked the surrounding area before we began our exit. The only possible sign of the karst we found was what appeared to be a sink on a hill southeast of the cave. Though its difficult to tell if it really was a sink or just the odd shape of the landscape. The fact that it lies in the direction the cave goes is very supportive of it being a sink.
The Currently Inaccessible Chamber
I spent the next week reviewing my photos and survey data. One of the details that stuck in my mind was the amount of mud in the rear of the cave. I also noticed how mud seemed to slope steeply downward from the left of the currently inaccessible upper chamber. The old map did show the cave continuing after the upper chamber but being far too tight for a person to access. It made me wonder if the karst was still active and large enough to transport mud as it drained out the water from the hill south of the cave. The only way I could possibly answer these questions was if I could get to the back of the cave.
Comparing my measurements with those on the old map, I noticed the part of the cave close to the upper chamber was over a foot shorter than originally measured. I figured that mud brought in over the past 40 years has reduced the height of the passage. I had probed a stick at least five inches into the mud during my second visit to see how deep it was, but I now wanted to know if I could add another foot or more if I were to remove the mud.
I again returned to the cave for a third visit. Though I once again surveyed parts of the cave, the real reason I returned was to dig a small hole in the back of the cave to see how deep the mud was. As I began to dig down I saw that digging it out would not be as easy as I hoped. Trying to dig in such a small space was difficult on it own. What made it even more of a challenge was that the mud was littered with three to six inch sized shards of stone. The cave was still in the process of growing in size and this was the debris from the erosion.
After about 15 minute of hard work, I had dug a hole over a foot deep with no sign of the floor of the cave. Hoping to find the floor I tried the same at the base of the mud slope in the middle of the cave. There I also was able to dig down a foot with no bedrock in sight. I now felt that with a weekend or two of hard work, I could easily increase the height of the chamber from one foot five inches, to three and maybe even four or more feet high. Increasing its size that much would not only make the cave easier to navigate, it would also give me ample space for accessing and exploring what lie in the upper chamber at it conclusion. With the ceiling of the upper chamber appearing to be two feet higher than my current location, clearing the mud might even make it tall enough to stand in. Maybe that is just a bit of wishful thinking but we’ll see. Right now my plan is to wait for warmer and longer days to take on this task, but knowing my habits, I wouldn’t be surprised if it was completed even before the end of April.
~Michael
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